East Lomond and the Maspie Den circular

A steep ascent is rewarded with views across Fife and a wander down the delightful Maspie Den on this 5 mile circular walk with about 400m of ascent.

Distance: 8 km / 5 miles

Ascent: 400 m / 1300 feet

Start / finish: Falkland

Facilties: plenty of choice in Falkland.

Maspie Den

Maspie Den

Maspie Den waterfall

Start from the old factory building (now demolished) on Well Brae at the top of the town. Parking is available nearby at the library / community centre on Back Wynd.

The path for East Lomond starts from the right hand side of the factory building. Keep to the right hand lane where you see the signpost for the Lomond Hills. Soon after, there is the start of a set of steps on your left hand side. These steps take you steeply up the side of the hill through the trees, past a small reservoir on your right. There is about 125m of ascent up the steps before you reach a gate which takes you out on to the open hillside.

The path continues onwards and upwards with a further 150m of ascent and passes through another gate before reaching the summit with its viewpoint indicator. Take a well earned rest at the summit whilst enjoying the views. With the hard work now behind you desend in a westerly direction. The main path is very eroded and steep, you may find it easier going to keep to the left on the steeper section and join the main path when the gradient eases off. Continue downhill on a wider path to reach a gate.

After the gate you join a wide track where you turn right to continue westwards. A gate on your left leads to a well preserved lime kiln which is worth a short detour. From this point it is about 1km on the wide track to reach the car park at Craigmead which could be used as an alternative start point for this walk. There are picnic tables and toilets at Craigmead along with information boards.

The next section of the walk takes you down to the Maspie Den and Falkland Estate. You can either turn right on to the road and then go through the gate on your left, or walk through the car park and pick up a path at the far end (or go up the steps). If going through the car park, cross the field following the sign for “path to Falkland” after going through a gate.

Once on the path, which has a good surface at this point, keep on the main path going downhill staying above the burn. After about 500m you may hear the sound of a waterfall to your right. Look out for two paths on your right hand side. The second of these paths is marked with a wooden post and provides a muddy and sometimes slippy descent to the Yadd Fall. Cross the burn by walking behind / under the waterfall and then take the lower path heading down hill.

The path now sticks close to the burn and makes for a very scenic, though sometimes muddy, walk as it criss crosses the burn on wooden bridges. When you reach an area with a stone bridge and where the paths seem to multiply, stick to the left hand side of the burn. If you do this you will encounter a short tunnel which you can walk through. It’s only short so you don’t need a torch. After the tunnel you pass under a stone bridge and soon emerge at Falkland House. Cross the burn on a bridge and pick up one of the paths on the opposite side. Both paths will bring you onto a track / road where you turn right.

This road will take you to the Stables car park which could be used as an alternative start point for the walk. To avoid a road walk back to Falkland, turn left across a bridge and then turn immediately right to follow a path on the opposite side of the burn. Stay on the path, don’t cross back over to the car park, until the path starts to leave the burn. At this point takes the smaller path to stick close to the burn. Walk through a play area and out onto an access road. This road leads past a few houses and back into Falkland. Turn right to go past the Stag Inn then left onto the main road to return to the centre of the village.

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Information provided on this website was correct to the best of the author’s knowledge at the time of publication. When deciding whether or not to walk a route the information provided should only be considered as a guide. You walks the routes at your own risk and should assess current hazards for yourself. Some walks are off path and may require navigation skills and some walks are in remote areas away from civilisation. You should ensure that you are properly equipped for the walk you undertake especially if doing higher level routes. Whilst we do have a right of responsible access in Scotland, in practise access issues can occasionally still be encountered.